Far Out There
by Reiko Tivrusky
Summary: Cloud and Tifa move to Cosmo Canyon only to be troubled with an overboard obsession. Rated M for future chapters. RR!
1. On the road again

One year after the defeat of Sephiroth

"Cloud, do you mean it!" Tifa jumped excitedly. The prospect of what cloud had just offered was overwhelming, Tifa could barley contain herself.

"You bet, we can leave as soon as you are ready." Cloud watched as she bounded up the stairs.

Cloud and Tifa had been together for a year, living in Nebilheim. They hadn't married and had very few possessions, though they live a very comfortable life they really couldn't settle down.

This was the most excited Tifa had been in a long time. Hurriedly she packed, as if Cloud would change his mind in the time it would take her to pack.

_Cosmo Canyon, Cloud is taking me to Cosmo Canyon. I will finally get to see Nanaki again! _Tifa finished packing in ten minutes, briefly touching on the thought of how few items she had after a year. Quickly she flew down the stairs and out the door.

Out by the car they had bought together, Cloud was loading what little he had. Tifa threw her things into the backseat and ran over to where Cloud was. She embraced him and looked deep into his green tinted eyes. "Do you really mean it, we really get to leave?"

He returned her embrace, "of course, would I lie to you?" He looked at her and Tifa got goose bumps from how it was like he was looking through her, but let the feeling pass.

They got into the car, Cloud drove, and they headed south, towards Cosmo Canyon. The drive was silent. Tifa was going over everything that had happened and what she was going to do next.

"Cloud, why are we going to Cosmo Canyon?" she had been wondering this since she got into the car.

"Because I think its time something…something different happened." Cloud didn't even turn his head

Tifa accepted this and returned to her thoughts, ignoring how creepy and distant Cloud looked.

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"Father I need your guidance" Nanaki looked at his father, frozen in time. "I need to know if it is time to leave my home or stay here and over look the people."

As if on cue a small child ran up the path to where Seto and Nanaki were. "Nanaki! Nanaki! We have newcomers! They wish to speak with you.

He looked at his father and caught his breath. "Thank you, Father."

Nanaki Leaped off the high cliff and as if the great cat and the child had practiced the child jumped onto Nanaki's back and stayed there till they got to the end of the cave. The child dismounted as per the lion's request. The child understood the cats need to save face.

As the doors flew open Nanaki immediately smelled Cloud and Tifa. He ran out and down the stairs to greet his old friends.

"Nanaki! How have you been? I missed you." Tifa got down on one knee so she could wrap her arms around her friends neck.

"Im fine and I missed you too." The great cat purred at her touch. "What brings you two here."

Cloud interjected with "I thought it would be a nice change of pace. We are going to be living around here, if nobody minds." Cloud looked sheepishly at the cat, realizing he may be intruding.

"Of course you can stay! I would never turn you two, of all people, out." Nanaki beamed with his razor sharp teeth in a frighteningly pleasant manner.


	2. Drunk in public revised

The entire community gathered to welcome the new residents of their peaceful village. They began a fairly large bonfire, there were many festivities, and everyone was joyis.

Before the sun went down there were sports and games to play. Cloud played most of them and won at everything he did join. Tifa watched in awe as Cloud put on this amazing performance. When he was done Cloud walked over to where Tifa was and absently put his arm around her shoulders.

"You can put on a really good show, when you want to." Tifa commented as Cloud stared out at the people.

"Its nothing. It's not even a challenge." Tifa just smiled, happy to be in other peoples company again.

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That night they all gathered around the fire. Many were drunk and those who weren't were getting there. Cloud and Tifa just sat near the fire; Cloud was nursing a beer, not one for public drunkenness. Tifa on the other hand was plastered, she was telling stories. The drunker she got, the louder she got. She stumbled around and bumped into people. Cloud had to keep her from falling into the bonfire…twice!

"Tifa, chill out. You're gonna get hurt" Cloud was beginning to get annoyed at her behavior. He sat her down next to him. "will you please calm down!" his voice was harsh and annoyed but she didn't care.

"hey! Hey everybody!" tifa stood and hollered loud enough for all of the other drunks to hear her. "you guys wanna hear a story bout this blonde guy here?" her words were slurred and lacking in intelegnce. They all responded with an overall approving moan. She began to regail them with the tail of Cloud being beaten by the Jumpings in the Icicle area.

_Damn those rabbits. _Cloud thought as tifa embarresed him. He began to tire of her endless chatter. He saw a set of stairs where it would be to far for tifa to walk at the moment. She was really distracted and didn't even notice Cloud slipping away.

Nanaki was drawn to the fire by Tifa's story telling, some of what he heard was about their past quest. He looked over to see cloud sitting on the steps up to the observatory. He decided to go and keep him company.

Having drunk a little himself Nanaki wasn't exactly graceful and his speech was slurred. "To loud for ya?" he asked Cloud while he sat lazily next to him.

"She's a little outlandish, I just don't wanna be in the middle of that." He pointed toward the crowd that was circling Tifa.

"Yeah, I'm not one for crowds either." He sat and stared at the people that were joyously laughing at something the drunk Tifa had to say. "She's very radiant, and it seems easy for her to attract attention."

"Yeah, I know. She always has" Cloud said those last words rather flatly. "Where do you guys keep your books?"

Caught off guard by this question coming from Cloud, Nanaki had to think for a second. "Um, we keep them under the observatory. You are welcome to look through there anytime you like."

All of a sudden a small child flew from the crowd and flung himself at Nanaki. As the boy jumped Nanaki simply stepped slightly to the side as the boy landed flat on hid backside.

"Hey! You didn't catch me!" the boy protested as the lion rolled his eyes.

"We don't play that game out in public." Nanaki tried to sound stern but it came out with a hint of laughter.

Cloud, obviously confused, piped up "who is this kid?"

"He is Sancha. He was dropped off here as a child during the Meteor scare. When I came back he took a liking to me. So I've been taking care of him since." Nanaki looked as the boy ran back towards the crowd and disappeared within the scramble of people.

Cloud and Nanaki sat and talked for a few hours while Tifa drained herself ranting in the crowd. When all was said and done Cloud helped Tifa as she stumbled towards the room. She slept fully clothed as Cloud went to the library for a couple of books.

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	3. Reading?

The next day Tifa awoke to the absence of Cloud. Slightly confused she went out to look for him. She walked towards the stairs that cloud and Nanaki were sitting the previous night and sure enough there he was...reading to Tifa's shock.

"Hey, I missed you this morning" after the confusion of the morning Tifa realized she had a massive headache and sat down.

"I just got up early to do some reading" Cloud was annoyed at the distraction but he responded never the less.

"Well ok. Ill be in the room, I've gotta get out of this light. Its gonna kill me." Tifa staggered off towards their sleeping quarters at the Inn.

As she went she ran into the large cat Nanaki. "How are you doing Tifa?" the lion didn't look too well himself and didn't put out too much effort to hide it.

"I'm...gonna go lay down after I take about 30 aspirin." Tifa's hand rose to her head. "It feels like I'm being split in two."

"Yeah, I know what you mean." the cat went off to lie in some shade and get out of Tifa's way.

Tifa finally made it to her room and was glad to just be able to collapse onto her bed. Almost at once she decided agenst it. She needed a shower, badly. Slowly she got up and headed to the bathroom adjacent to her room.

_I wonder when we will get our own place. _Tifa was very curious on this issue. But no matter what she would let Cloud make that decision. As far as she knew, she was just along for the ride.

She got out of the shower and decided to sleep off her hangover. _This is why I only _serve_ drinks._

In only what seemed like a few seconds, she was asleep.

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Cloud immersed himself in the book he was reading before he was disturbed. The knowledge he was gaining astounded him. All of the information ran through his head like lightning. He read one book after another and before he realized it was 1 in the morning.

He left the library and headed to the room he shared with Tifa. All of what he learned in just one day buzzed around his head. Once he got inside he went to take a shower and get ready for bed. Had he not been so distracted he probably wouldn't have cut himself trying to shave

"Ow! Damn it." Slightly irritated he went off to bed. Slowly he crawled under the covers as not to wake Tifa. He lay back on his pillows with his hands behind his head, just waiting for the next day. So close yet so far. I will have you back. With that thought Cloud drifted into sleep


	4. The way he was

The next morning was much better on Tifa, but, again, no Cloud. Determined to figure out what was going on with him she set out to find him. She wandered through town, but no signs of Cloud. She asked a villager where the library was and she set off in that direction.

As she walked up the steps she began to think_. What's gotten in to him? This is very… not like Cloud._ As she made it to the library more questions raced through her head, the main issue was why. Why was he reading so much now? What is he reading about? Before now Tifa didn't even know he _could_ read before this, let alone become obsessed with books.

She finally made it to the top and found the library door. Tifa open the door slowly, and just enough to see inside. Cloud was sitting there, buried in a mountain of books, he looked entranced.

Tifa opened the door all of the way, and slowly walked up behind him. She got a good look at the book he was reading. It appeared to be in an ancient language and had many charts and graphs the Tifa didn't understand.

"Cloud?" he jumped up and almost struck her, but quickly realized who she was. "What are you doing here?" Tifa was concerned and slightly frightened. She had snuck up on him several times in the past and never had he reacted like this.

"I'm reading, what's it look like" Cloud wasn't all there but he sounded irritated nonetheless. He put down his book and looked her straight in the eyes.

"Well, what are you reading?" Tifa was very worried at this point. Cloud had never acted like this.

"I'm reading…everything. I want to know if I can go back in time, or bring people back to life, or just understand the life stream." Clouds eyes were blank as he spoke; his voice was also flat and emotionless.

Tifa's eyes widened as she realized the magnitude of books in the library. "What's wrong with you? There must be thousands of books here. There is no way you can read all of them."

"If I don't leave and only sleep for a little while I think I can." He seemed almost angry, but mostly irritated. Tifa shrank down inside herself. _Cloud, oh Cloud, what's going on?_

Cloud, obviously not having anymore to say to her, went and retrieved his book and went back to reading. Tifa knew she had to go find Nanaki. She was pretty sure he would know how to help, or at least figure out what was going on.

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Nanaki was resting in the shade of a tree when a next to tears Tifa came running g towards him. He immediately sat up, stretched and waited for whatever Tifa had to say.

"Nanaki, have you seen Cloud today? I'm a bit worried." Her eyes were brimming with tears she fought to hold back; crying was the last thing that was needed.

"No, I haven't. Why, what's wrong?" Nanaki, having nothing but concern for the girl, wanted to help any way he could.

"He's in the library, and he's reading"

Not shocked at this tiny piece of information, Nanaki couldn't figure out why this would upset her. "What so wrong with that?"

Tifa saw the plainly confused look on the cats face and realized how stupidly she put that. "He says he wants to read everything in that library. He's really freaking me out. If you saw him you'd understand." She sat down and again tried to figure out what would motivate him to do such a thing.

"He's beginning to act like…Sephiroth." Nanaki shuddered when she mentioned his name. They both thought back to their journey, when Cloud told his story. Sephiroth hid in the mansion and read until what he learned drove him mad. Tifa did not want to see the same fate for Cloud.

"Ill go see him." _Ill do anything to make you feel better. _And with that he was off to see what was amiss.


	5. Break down

As Nanaki made his way towards the library he wondered what could be so wrong with Cloud reading. Once he entered the library he suddenly realized Tifa's concern. Most of the books had been taken off of the shelves and were circled around Cloud like a little fortress. He slowly approached Cloud but soon realized that there was no way he could help startling him.

"Cloud…" was all Nanaki could get out before the blonde jumped immediately into a fighting position. He relaxed as soon as he knew who had just scared him.

"Oh…what do you want?" Cloud sat back down, marked his book and eerily stared through the cat.

Nanaki felt a cold shiver as he looked at him like that. "Tifa seemed concerned for you and I came to see why." He shifted uneasily; the aurora in the room was very uncomfortable.

"What? I'm just reading a few books" he motioned at the books stacked around him.

The great cat did not want to beat around the bush for hours on end, which would be easy to do in this situation. He wanted to know why Cloud would be tiring to read everything.

"Look, you wouldn't understand…"

"Yes I would. I've read everything here already. If there's something you want to learn, I probably already know what it is." Nanaki was getting frustrated.

At that moment Cloud broke. Tears flowed freely from his eyes. He collapsed onto the ground and became what seemed like a puddle of sorrows.

Nanaki, thoroughly confused, walked over to where the broken man lay. He laid down and put his head on Cloud's shoulder and waited until he calmed down and was ready to talk.

After the longest 5 minutes ever, cloud was ready to talk.

"I cant live this lie anymore. I can't keep hurting Tifa and myself. I care about her… but my hearts not totally for her. I want to love her with all my heart but I just cant. I still love Aries. I want her back. I'm trying to find a way to bring her back, or go back in time. I feel that nothings to drastic to have her back. I want to find an alternative to the only other way I can think of to join her in the life stream."

Cloud's eyes went to the floor as Nanaki realized that if his friend didn't reach his goal he would take his own life to be with her.

"I know there is no stopping you, what ever you decide. I hope you find your answer." With that he left Cloud to give the news to Tifa.


	6. The truth hurts

Nanaki found Tifa right outside her room, waiting for him. She saw the look on his face and could tell that this was going to be bad.

"Lets go in your room." Nanaki motioned towards the door and they entered. Tifa sat on her bed while the cat jumped to sit next to her. He painstakingly told her of his and Clouds conversation.

Tifa immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and sobbed until it hurt. He was willing to stay there all night if she needed him to; he hated seeing her in such pain. He cared for Tifa, maybe even loved her, but he always dismissed the thoughts. He knew it would never work, so he tried his hardest to ignore it.

"W-why would he do this? He brings me down here…and…and…" she couldn't finish and once again buried her face in Nanaki's neck. She thought Cloud loved her. She was hurt, but not shocked. She knew that she wasn't the one he loved, she always knew, but the prospect of being without him, or alone, was overwhelming.

Now that she thought back she realized how blind she was. The days where he wouldn't talk turned into weeks. He was a lump on the couch that just stared at the TV…even when it was off. When they made love he didn't do anything, it was her doing all of the work, and neither came off satisfied.

After a few minutes Tifa gathered herself and regained her composure. She released Nanaki and sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the floor, silent tears still falling. All she had hoped would work was just obliterated.

"Well… what do I do now?" she asked herself more then anything.

"I don't know what all I can do for you, but you may stay here as long as you need." Nanaki felt such sorrow for the girl. He would have given up anything at this moment to have arms to wrap around her, to shield her from the pain.

"Thank you, Nanaki" she hugged the cat. "I'm gonna get some sleep"

"Ok, you know where I'll be, if you need me" the lion jumped off of the bed and walked towards the door.

"Nanaki," he turned around to face the sorry girl. "Again thank you, I don't ever know how I can repay you." She smiled broadly, that was enough thanks.


	7. Exit

Day after day for almost a month Cloud only left the library to get food and relieve himself. He looked very pale and tired, beyond his years. Everyday Tifa checked on him and everyday she got worse.

She wondered if Cloud was even sleeping. She was worried for Cloud and disregarded herself. Nanaki took note of her condition and decided he needed to do something.

It took two days but Nanaki finally contacted someone who would help. Now all he needed to do was convince Tifa.

Finding her wasn't very difficult these days. She was either asleep, watching Cloud or sitting on a cliff edge that overlooked the land all the way out to the water. Luckily she wasn't with Cloud, was at the cliff, standing on the edge.

"Tifa!" Nanaki yelled, "what are you doing?" her arms were stretched out as far as they would go.

"I can't do this anymore! I can't watch Cloud slowly kill himself!" she was screaming as tears ran down her face. "I don't wanna be here anymore! I HATE THIS PLANET!"

"Wait! Don't do this till you hear me out." Nanaki was now panicked. This girl was going to give up everything and he couldn't let that happen. "Come over here...please."

Tifa contemplated for a moment and decided she would finish this after she talked to the cat. "Ok" she turned around and walked over to the cat. "What do you want?" she said this in an almost child-like voice.

"Why are you going to do this?" Nanaki motioned for her to sit, she did.

"I don't know what else to do" silent tears still streaming down her face. "I guess all I ever wanted to do was be with Cloud. Now I cant do that."

"Well, I think I found a solution for all of this. I don't like seeing you like this. You look terrible and I think you need to get away from here." She was now looking at him with the shine in her eyes that she had lost the night he told her what Cloud was planning. The look took his breath away.

"I've discusses it with Elmyra and she says you can come and stay with her in Midgar. You will be able to see Barret and from what I heard Vincent lived there too."

Tifa's face was now glowing with excitement. Thoughts of suicide now were completely erased form her mind. She had not seen anyone for a very long time because Cloud never wanted to go. She now had a chance at a new beginning.

She hugged Nanaki's neck and could barely contain herself. She was now crying in joy. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" she had a moment of thought. "What about you, I'm gonna miss you" there was now a hint of sadness in her eyes but her face still showed excitement.

"Don't you worry about me. I want you to feel better." He stood and shook to re adjust his ruffled fur. "I even got you a private flight. You leave tomorrow."

She jumped in joy then hugged the great cat one more time. After she had her fill of that she ran off to her room, afraid if she tried to talk again she would bust out crying.

Nanaki looked after her. It hurt to she her go but he felt that if he could make her happy in the long run his life would be complete. He had to let her go.


	8. Off we go

Once Tifa was on the airship she put the things away and hurried to the deck. She loved watching the world go by through the window of the Highwind. She spotted Cid and ran to thank him for the ride.

"Hi Cid!" She wrapped her arms around the pilot. He looked uncomfortable but hugged her back. After the quick embrace she was slightly curious as to how Cid acquired the Shinra ship.

"How did you manage to keep the Highwind? Isn't this still a Shinra ship?"

"Yea, but did you really think I would give up this beaut?" After this cocky comment he gave her a slightly sheepish look. In a low voice he told her "actually this model was outdated, they didn't even want it anymore." Tifa giggled at the fact that he was trying to act all macho in front of his crew (also confinscated from Shinra.)

After a few more minutes of talking Tifa went to the front of the ship once again. The world blowing by like this always captivated her. She stared out the window and memories of the last time she on this ship completely derailed her train of thought. Cloud's face was almost right in front of her eyes. A flood of emotion hit her. She almost immidiately burst into tears. So no one would see her, she ran out onto the deck.

Cid witnessed this sudden change in Tifa. It always pulled at his heart strings when he saw a girl cry. He barked out a few more commands and went up to see the poor girl. He walked up towards the deck to comfort Tifa.

As he made it up there he saw Tifa leaning on the rail, crying. He quietly walked up to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "What's wrong?" the only words he could think of that may help just kind of fell out.

Tifa dried her eyes and looked out towards the scenery. "Nothing, just... I don't know." She couldn't find the words to describe what was wrong.

"Oh come on. Girls don't just run off cryin' for no reason." Cid was determined to find out what was wrong. He had always liked Tifa. She made a connection with him like no other person in the group. She seemed to be able to bring out the best in people. He had even seen her make Vincent crack a smile, no one could do that, no one. He was a little disappointed when she went off with one of his least favorite people, Cloud.

"I can't believe I'm leaving Cloud like this. I thought we would be together forever. I loved him, and I thought he loved me. It's disappointing and painful. I don't know what I'm going to do now. I'm so scared, but I'm a little excited." Her eyes filled with a little hope for the future. She never thought she would be alone like this. Now she realized she was free. More free than she had ever been.

"Well I think you will find what you want. Now you can find a life outside of Cloud." Cid couldn't believe how constructive he was being.

She was much happier now. She gave Cid a quick peck on the cheek. "Thank you Cid. You've really helped me." Another hug and she was off to her room. She had a big day ahead of her. The day her new life started.


	9. Strange man

The ship finally docked at the rebuilt Midgar. The place was busy and looked very happy. Tifa was sure things were still run the same. After a quick goodbye and a promise to see each other again Cid and Tifa parted ways.

As Tifa walked through the city she realized how much it actually changed. There were real buildings rather than tents. There were children running around and they were actually happy, something she had almost never felt as a child herself. The citizens were working diligently in sector 7. There were still piles of rubble in places that were out of the way but they remained as reminders of the terrible past that plagued the city.

As she went through the sector she entered a weapon shop, just in case. She bought herself the grand glove. This was her favorite glove. She had sold all of her weapons and armor but kept her materia, all mastered. She had steal, fire, Shiva, cure, and some how acquired Clouds Ultima. She also had others but these were her favorites.

She decided to make her way to sector 5 after a stroll through all of the shops. This sector was still full of monsters that seemed never to stop coming. She was forced to fight several hell houses and a couple hole eaters. It was fun to fight again but she missed the others by he side. As she felt this despair she was hit. It didn't do much damage but it brought her back to real life. She quickly killed it and ran off to sector 5.

As she made her way to Elmyra's house she cast a cure spell to the gash on her leg. "Stupid hole eater." She hated the way cure felt but it was better than tasting a potion. Those things almost made her vomit. Everyone else just grimaced and Yuffie mocked her the one time she wasn't feeling well and she actually vomited after a potion. Tifa knocked Yuffie for a loop over that one. That wasn't a good day.

Generally her and Yuffie got along well, they had actually been the best of friends. Aeris was kind of an outcast among the group. She was always by herself. Tifa had tried to make friends with her but she had always been too distant.

With all the thinking Tifa was shocked when she found herself in sector 3.

Sector 3 was in ruins. no one was here, and it was kind of spooky.

"Goodness, what on earth am I doing here?" As she turned around to go to Elmyra's house she heard a groan. She went into a fighting stance prepared for the worst. She quickly shifted her vision around. She saw a pile move. She ran over, ready to defeat whatever may pop out. Tifa had never been in sector 3 she had no idea what to expect, and she was glad her Limit was full.

She looked into the pile and saw a man, or what was left of one. He was almost in need of a phoenix down and she was glad she had stocked up on them. She kneeled down and cast cure 3. He regained full consciousness and looked at her with brilliant green eyes, no hint of mako.

"Hi, thanks for your help. I don't know what happened." He stood and she realized how striking he was. "I wish I..could...repay..y..o..u"

All of a sudden he collapsed and Tifa caught him. She almost fell when she caught his scent. She knew she couldn't bring a unconscious man to Elmyra's house without being questioned. So she decided to bring him to the Inn in sector 7.

As she went through sector 6 she was really not in the mood to fight and simply demolished anything that got in her way. She was a very high level and was very proud of herself. She finally made it to the Inn. The Inn keeper stared at her questioningly. This was probably due to the large man draped across her shoulders, unconscious. He shrugged it off and gave her the key.

She made he way too the room and put him on the couch. She was desperate to know his name but knew it may take a while.

She sat on the bed and took off her boots. As she shut off the light and laid down she wondered why she is doing this, why she was helping this man. Plus she wondered if Elmyra was concerned. With these thoughts she drifted off into a restless sleep.


	10. Goth is Hot!

Elmyra nervously sipped her tea. She was so worried about Tifa she almost went out to find her by herself.

"You can't go out there. It it way to dangerous, and I really don't want to lose you to some Hell House!" Barret was not going to allow Elmyra to go out into night time Midgar. It was truly not a place for a woman such as Elmyra. "Tifa can take care of herself. Don't worry."

Elmyra and Barret had been together for the last 6 months. After the crisis Barret had gone to get Marlene and him and Elmyra had gotten to talking. Marlene had taken a liking to the motherly woman and Barret couldn't bear the thought of taking her away from his little girl. They began living together and then one thing lead to another, like they always do. Now they are a very happy couple. Barret haden't been this happy since his wife, Mina, had been alive.

"All right." Elmyra took off her coat and hung it back up. She knew Barret was right but she was so worried for the young woman."But if she's not here tomorrow you go look for her."

"OK I promise I will." with this Barret went up to make sure Marlene was well. Elmyra went to the kitchen to make some tea.

- -

Tifa awoke the next morning with the feeling of being watched. Cautiously, she looked around the room to see the man she had saved the night before. He was staring at her with a hint of urgency in his eyes. "What's wrong?" She really was beginning to wonder how long he had been staring at he like this.

"P-p-p-lease h-h-help. C-c-can't m-m-move. G-g-gotta g-g-go." She realized he had not moved since she had brought him in.

"Ok, ok, ill be back with some soft. It will only take a minute." She ran out of the room and out the Inn door.

She made her was to the item shop. It wasn't broken any more. she put in the gil and retrieved the small vial containing what would help the man. on her way out she bumped into someone. Tifa fell "ow, hey! Watch where you're going!" she had dropped the soft and found it right in front of the man's foot.

"I'm terribly sorry. Tifa?" the man sounded completely shocked. She looked up only to see one of her favorite people, Vincent. she jumped up and gave him a great big hug. "I missed you so much!" she actually looked at him only to realize how much he had changed.

He let his hair grow out and it was almost too long for only a year to have gone by. It was braided and reached past his waist. His gothic style had completely took on a new form of scary, and sexy. His black and red cape had become a jet black cape with a beautiful red dragon embroidered on the back. His leather boots seemed huge and had several belts wrapped around them with silver buckles. He no longer wore his gloves and proudly displayed his mechanical arm. The Death Peanalty was strapped to his back underneath the cape and gleamed beautifully.

"Well... how are you?" Vincent really wanted to know how she was. She was the only person who had shown any emotion for him in almost his entire life.

She told him the story of Cloud and she completely forgot about the man in her room. He told her about the time he had spent in the mountains. He was also now living Midgar and working as a wholesale weapon maker.

"Well it was good to see you again." Vincent gave her a quick hug and left. She ran outside the tent and he was nowhere to be found. She knew she would see him again.

It suddenly struck her, there was a paralyzed and in her room. She ran to the Inn as quickly as she could, still flooded with thoughts of Vincent.


	11. The Hot Stranger

As Tifa entered the room all thoughts of Vincent left and she was immediately full of concern for the man that was petrified on the couch. She quickly administered the antidote and hoped for the best.

He slowly began to move and as soon as he could stand he almost ran to the bathroom. Tifa couldn't help but to giggle. Once he came out, she realized how gorgeous he really was.

His dark brown hair reached to just above his shoulders, and it looked as if it was tied back most of the time. He wore one necklace that had a small feather tied to it. His shirt was a black tunic type with simple, blue embroidery around the edges. Over this was leather armor that went all the way down his arms. His pants were simply lose jeans, with a leather belt.

She realized she had been staring at him for quite some time, she blushed and looked away. He was the one to break the silence.

"My name is Daniel. Thank you for saving me, im sure I'd still be laying out there if it wasn't for you." She smiled at this.

"Im Tifa..." she wasn't sure what to say next and ended up looking around nervously.

As if saving the situation, he offered to take her to lunch for saving her. She agreed and they went to the restaurant just across the way.

They enjoyed a nice lunch and they really hit it off. In actuality Tifa was a higher level but his strength was massive. They compared armor, weapons and materia. He had never even heard of Ultima and asked her about it. This time when she thought of Cloud she didn't break into tears or freeze, she simply told him that she got it from a friend.

After lunch she told him where she needed to go. He said he would join her if she liked. She thought about it and decided that it would probably be okay.

As they went on there way, Tifa couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched.

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It was the next day and Elmyra was getting more and more concerned about Tifa. Barret kept trying to comfort her but to no avail. She continued pleading with Barret to let her go and find her but he assured her that she would show up.

After another hour Tifa did show and Elmyra was relieved. She hugged her and so did Barret and Marlene. They were also introduced to the strange man.

"Tifa, why don't you tell us how you've been doing?" Elmyra wanted to know what could be so serious as to make Tifa part ways with Cloud and she, after a few hours, had her answer.

"My goodness, im so sorry for you loss tifa." Elmyra was truly shocked by the turn of events and couldn't bear to know that this happened to such a good person.

"I otta go find the bastard and beat it out of him." Barret was visibly disgruntled. Elmyra calmed him enough to sit back down. He had stood up full of rage.

"Its okay...I've dealt with it. I've realized that I don't need Cloud. It still hurts, but I think ill live." She looked over at Daniel and realized how little he actually knew of these events. He looked a little angry. When he looked into her eyes, he was almost immediately calm. She thought this was kind of eerie.

After a meal and a good long conversation all were ready for bed. Tifa noticed that Daniel hadn't said much but that was to be expected. He was surrounded by strangers.

Everyone slept well that night.


	12. The Bar

The next day Tifa wasn't totally sure what her next move would be. She spent the majority of the day with Marlene. They acted like sisters. Tifa had always wanted a little sister and Marlene was a perfect little sister. At about nine Marlene was off to bed. Tifa was no where near tired and decided she wanted to go out and have some fun. She went to find Daniel.

Barret had take Daniel out and they were practicing their moves on each other. This wasn't such a good idea on Barret's part. He looked like he had gotten his ass kicked all day.

"Barret, if you're done here, I would like to steal Daniel for the night." She couldn't totally conceal the laugh that had suddenly arisen. He noticed this and glared at her.

"Take the ! Im done with him!" Barret slowly got up and limped his way into the house, muttering something about 'he aint so strong, I let him have it'.

"You didn't have to beat him up that much." Tifa crossed her arms in false anger.

He smiled at her. "He came at me, all I did was defend myself. I swear!" Tifa thought he looked very cute.

"Wanna go out for a drink?" Before he had a chance to answer she had a hold of his arm and was pulling him toward the house to tell Elmyra where they were going.

When they got to the bar, it was almost empty. They sat on a couple of stools and ordered. As Tifa looked around, she realized how much business the Seventh Heaven actually had gotten.

After they had their drinks they began to talk again. Tifa told many stories of the groups adventure and he told of his own battles. They were true enthralling and before they knew it they had at least nine drinks a piece and it was very, very late. Rather then going all the way back to Elmyra's they decided to rent another room at the inn. This was decided mostly because Elmyra's house was a very long walk for them at this point in time.

As they went to the inn Tifa had her arm around his waist and his was around her shoulders. This was mainly due to the lacking of balance in both of them, but it made Tifa feel very safe and comfortable. When they got to the inn, the inn keeper looked annoyed because he slept there too and knew what to expect for a drunk couple renting a room.

They made their way to the room and both fell on the bed. He wrapped his arms around her and looked deeply into her eyes.

"You are the most beautiful women I have ever met. You can fight like a goddess, you're a wonderful person and you are very, very sexy." His words were very slurred and almost comical. He wasn't a very good drunk.

Tifa began to giggle. "You are drunk." She tried her best not to sound drunk herself but failed horribly.

"No, no, no. I mean it. I have never met another woman like you. You are my perfect woman! Where the hell have you been all my life?" this really made Tifa laugh but she was truly touched.

"I've been wasting my life chasing this pointy haired freak!" this was a revelation for Tifa. "He didn't love me!" she sat up. "I loved him! him! I've got you." She leaned over and kissed him.

With that they both passed out, in each others arms.


End file.
